The Boys & Girls Club of Oshkosh is pleased to announce the 2018 Boys & Girls Club of Oshkosh Youth of the Year winner — Nichole Van Hoof. Each year a local Youth of the Year committee interviews a number of high school students at the Club judging them on their service to their Club, community, and family; academic success; strong moral character; life goals; and poise and public speaking ability before selecting a Youth of the Year winner for the organization.

In December, Van Hoof competed against five other local Club members for the title and ultimately won. As the Oshkosh Club’s 2018 Youth of the Year, she was awarded a $10,000 scholarship from the Boys & Girls Club’s Charles F. Hyde Jr. Youth of the Year Scholarship Endowment. Van Hoof said, “As Youth of the Year I hope to be a good example for kids younger than me that attend the Club and to show other young women and men confidence and help them gain more themselves.”

From here, Youth of the Year winners from local Boys & Girls Clubs across the state will travel to Green Bay to compete for the state title in March. Van Hoof will compete against 16 other Club members for the title of Wisconsin State Youth of the Year. If she wins the state title, she also would receive a $5,000 scholarship from BGCA and Disney and a $1,500 scholarship from the Boys & Girls Clubs Wisconsin Area Council.

Van Hoof is a junior at Oshkosh North High School and plans to pursue higher education at Marian University to prepare for a career in law enforcement. “My biggest goal is becoming a police officer in the near future,” she said. “I feel my purpose is to help those in need and those in my community and world.”

She has been a member of the Boys & Girls Club of Oshkosh for more than four years. She said, “I started going to the Club in the 2012-2013 school year when I moved to Oshkosh. The Club welcomed me with open arms and a smile. I had never felt the amount of acceptance that I felt in that moment, in my life. Moving to the city was scary but having the Club there as a support system was an amazing thing.”

During her time at the Club, Van Hoof has been involved in programs like the Professional Workshop, Power Hour Homework Help, Career Launch, Money Matters and the Keystone Leadership Club. She currently serves as the Keystone Leadership Club vice president.

Van Hoof also has given back to her community through her involvement with the Club. For one of her Keystone projects, she took a leadership role in helping coordinate a special evening that fostered positive communication between teens and the Oshkosh Police Department which included a dinner, a panel discussion and an obstacle course with teens and officers. This past summer, she also worked as a volunteer distributing food at a Feed America food drive that was held at the Club.

In her own words, “My Boys & Girls Club experience has been amazing, and I am very thankful for every opportunity that I otherwise probably never would have had. I am very optimistic for my future because it is very bright.”

“Nichole is one of those teens that you just know is going to do big things. She doesn’t shy away from a challenge and she not only takes advantage of every opportunity offered to her, but she takes leadership of those moments,” said Teen Center director Tiffanie Bolling.

“We are so proud of Nichole and look forward to all that she will accomplish academically and professionally in the next few years and most of all to how she ultimately will give back to her community,” added CEO Marc Dosogne.

For more information on the Boys & Girls Club of Oshkosh, contact the Club at 920-233-1414, visit the Club online at bgcosh.org or find the Club on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, (@BGCOsh), YouTube or LinkedIn.